GOLF

LA JOLLA Tiger Woods kicked off his 2013 PGA Tour season at Torrey Pines in similar fashion to how he's played here throughout his pro career: up and down, but mostly up.

Woods shot a 4-under-par 68 in the opening round of the Farmers Insurance Open on Thursday, overcoming a fourth-hole double-bogey with a birdie-eagle sequence on holes 5 and 6. Late putting misses cost him two or three more shots.

Still, through 18 holes, he sits just three shots off the 7-under pace set by Brandt Snedeker and K.J. Choi.

“I'm happy with it,” Woods said of his day. “I made a few mistakes out there, but I made some nice plays as well.”

Woods' score is more impressive considering it came on the tougher South Course at Torrey Pines, although mild conditions helped keep scores down. As is traditional on the course overlooking the Pacific Ocean, the 156-player field combined to shoot nearly two shots better on the North Course as compared to the South.

Woods, who failed to make the cut at a Europena Tour event in Abu Dhabi last week, is a six-time winner of the Farmers Insurance Open. The Torrey Pines South Course was also the site of his famous sudden-death U.S. Open triumph over Rocco Mediate in 2008.

“I feel comfortable here,” Woods said earlier in the week. “There is no doubt.”

Snedeker, the defending champion, played a bogey-free round on the North. Choi, his competition at the top, birdied three of his final four holes for a career-best 65 on the South.

“I've still got the hard course to go,” Snedeker said. “So not too much excitement yet.”

Snedeker parlayed a playoff victory here last year into a full-fledged breakout season that culminated with a $10 million FedEx Cup triumph in September.

Accordingly, he entered this year's tournament as a favorite to repeat. But he said he still has “155 guys” to worry about this weekend, including Woods.

“I think (Woods has) won here more times than I've won on tour,” said Snedeker, a four-time tour winner. “So I think he knows this place pretty well.”

Eight golfers tied for second at 6-under 66, including Mike Weir and Charles Howell III, who lost in a playoff Sunday at the Humana Challenge in La Quinta.

Phil Mickelson, grouped with Snedeker, shot an even-par 72 on the North Course, which he will reportedly help renovate in 2015.

He said he'll need to play “exceptional golf” to have a chance at rebounding for a fourth victory at Torrey Pines. He'll likely need an under-par round today to make the cut.

Mickelson made headlines earlier this week when he said after the Humana Challenge that he might have to make “drastic changes” to his lifestyle because of new California tax laws. He has since apologized for airing his beliefs publicly, calling the remarks “insensitive.”

He said Thursday he received no negative comments from fans on the course in La Jolla.